“What?”
“I let Dash throw away my favorite vibrator! It was special.” I laughed at her silliness. I was happy that she didn’t let Dash break her because her spirit was amazing. “So you still plan to go after Keiran and Dash, huh?”
The way she asked instantly had me turning around to face her. “I won’t go after Dash if you don’t want me to…” She shrugged and stared down at the floor.
“Willow?”
“I don’t want you to go after either of them.”
“Look, I don’t even know what I’m going to do. I just know I need to find out if he killed that girl.”
“Why?” She finally met my gaze again but she looked truly angry now. “You don’t even know her.”
“But she’s an innocent little girl.”
“How do you know that? Really, Lake. How? All you have is picture. So you found a locket in his closet that looks like hers. That doesn’t mean he did it.”
“Willow…”
“I know how it sounds, damn it! I just don’t want you to get hurt.”
“I promise, I’ll be careful,” I reassured her.
“Yeah well…promises are made to be broken.”
Sheldon came over an hour later with news that Anya had a bounty on my head. Apparently word spread that Keiran and I were a couple now and that I stole her man. “I wouldn’t worry about Anya, she is all talk. Keiran won’t let anyone touch you anyway.”
“I’m not worried about her. Keiran and I are just friends anyway.”
“Sure, babe.”
“Lake, I have to agree,” Willow chimed. “That kiss earlier didn’t look friendly. It was hot.”
“We just have an agreement. A truce of sorts.” A truce that was a half lie but would get me what I needed. There was no way Keiran was getting away with this.
“Uh huh and how did this agreement come about?” Sheldon asked.
“We played basketball.” They gave me a weird look and I ran down everything that happened starting with English. I didn’t however tell them about our impromptu shower.
“He totally hustled you, Lake.”
“What do you mean? It was a fair game.”
“Come on. You saw Keiran play. He used your curiosity and made the odds sound good enough that you couldn’t resist.”
“You got played,” Willow added.
“And if I know Keiran, he is after more than friendship.”
“I know. He made it pretty clear he wants sex.”
“Are you sure you know what giving it up to Keiran will lead to?” Sheldon asked.
“An orgasm?” I laughed.
“Lake, Keiran is playing for keeps.”
“He has had to fuck almost every girl at Bainbridge and then some. Does he keep all of them?”
“Of course not. And he isn’t as big of a man whore as you may think. He’s too calculating. Most of what he does has a purpose.”
“Like his sudden interest in me?”
“Have you been listening? It’s always been there.”
I didn’t understand why everyone was so convinced that Keiran has always wanted me. He has done everything in his power to convince everyone that I was an undesirable waste of space. I’ve never once been on a date because of him. I didn’t go to parties. I didn’t hang out. Up until now I had one friend. No matter how much I hid in the past, he found me. I ran and he chased. I couldn’t escape him. It was as if my pain fueled him.
This year was supposed to be about getting through and breaking away with the hope that I would never see him again. Now I was being told that the past was a lie. It felt very real to me because I still carried the scars. After his last play on my sanity, the scars ran deeper than ever before.
I guess I still haven’t gotten away from wearing my emotions on my face because Sheldon quickly changed the subject. “Willow what are you doing to my brother? He’s been snapping and growling at everyone. My dad put him in a chokehold when he snapped at mom. It was awesome.”
“I took your advice. I showed him I was serious.”
“I never doubted you were serious. I’m wondering though if you’re sure.”